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Press Release
FOCUS ON GOLF PRO AT THE TRACK
6/4/2010
By Lonnie Herman
Jon Johnson has put in some miles during his career as a golf professional. He began as an assistant pro at a private club in Omaha, Nebraska, moved on to splitting time between Long Island and the famed Augusta National, site of the Masters, put in some time as the head professional at a club in St. Louis, and worked for Michael Jordan Golf in Chicago; all before arriving in the Tampa Bay area.
But now, his traveling days are in the past, as Johnson has just completed his seventh year as the manager and head professional at one of the most unique operations of its kind, the Tampa Bay Downs Golf Practice Facility, located adjacent to the Tampa Bay Downs racetrack.
“There isn’t another race track in the US that has a driving range with an on-site betting facility,” Johnson said of the golf clubhouse, which features betting machines and simulcast monitors, along with a custom golf club area and other golf merchandise. “People come here and say they’ve read about this place and wanted to see it.”
Before the golf outlet was created, the area was 16 empty acres adjacent to the road to the stable area. Now that same plot of land features a putting green, three driving range grounds and two area to practice chipping, one with sand and one without. It also features a unique symbiotic relationship which has proven beneficial to both the track and the golf area.
“We get 8 or 10 people a day coming in just for the racing,” Johnson explained. “They’re regulars. They’re not golfers, but they like coming over here because it’s less crowded than the main facility – and it’s easier to park. They’ve found their own little spot.”
On big days, like the first Saturday in May when the Kentucky Derby is run, or on Tampa Bay Derby day, the racing crowd at the golf area will increase, and Johnson and his staff will often be called on for some special assistance.
“Some people come in that don’t know how to bet but we’re not much help for them,” Johnson said. “We don’t understand trifectas and all that but we try to point them in the direction of one of the regulars. ‘Have this guy help you out,’ we’ll say.”
They may not know trifectas, but the staff sure knows their golf. They specialize in lessons and feature three PGA qualified teaching professionals, led by one of the top instructors in the area, Matt Mitchell. Mitchell worked with LPGA professional Brittany Lincicome for over three years and the 16th leading tour money winner credits Mitchell, along with her parents, as the individuals who have been the most influential in her career. Mitchell has also developed some of the top high school golfers in the state, beginning to work with them when they were only five or six years old.
Johnson, a native of Monmouth, Illinois, makes certain that his staff keeps the golfers at the facility informed about the track and all that it offers.
“We always tell the golfers to go see the track – about how they can bring their families and have a great day,” Johnson explained. “It works the other way, too – some of the track regulars drive by here and see what we have to offer and if they have family down to visit that wants to work on their game, they send them over to us.”
Johnson and his wife, a Registered Nurse at Tampa General Hospital, have three grown children, one of whom is an assistant superintendent at Augusta National, the site of the Masters, where Johnson spent three seasons as an assistant pro and once carded an impressive score of 68. But these days he is much more focused on the growth of his corner of Tampa Bay Downs.
“We don’t want to be coasting along, because coasting is a downhill process,’ Johnson explained. “We’ll always be trying to find new things to introduce here.”
One of those improvements which have garnered some discussion is the addition of an up-market miniature golf course. Johnson also wants to increase the number of lessons that are offered and schedule even more, and larger, events like the popular demo days, when golfers get to try the latest manufacturer’s products.
In the interim, he points with pride to what has been accomplished on what was previously 16 vacant acres. Like the selection of the facility as one of the top 100 golf ranges by Golf Range Magazine, every year since 2006, or that on any given day local celebrities like Vincent Lecavalier of the Tampa Bay Lightning or any number of Tampa Bay Buccaneers can be spotted tuning up their game.
Johnson also regularly sees several of the top Thoroughbred trainers on the grounds working on their swing, and most are not shy about passing a tip on a hot horse on to the local golf pro.
“I would say that 95% of those tips don’t come in,” Johnson said. “It’s funny – they just don’t come in.”
And what does the trainer say after his information fails to pan out?
“After that,” Johnson smiles, “we just don’t see them for a little while.”
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